Warren County man's 'castle' a brick masterpiece

Jun. 15, 2013

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The courtyard, garden and parapet walk between the first turret and the second turret at Brian Manor. / The Enquirer/Joseph Fuqua II

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Chris Brian’s is the courtyard of courtyards.

He envisioned it while standing in a similar space at a small monastery in Rome 25 years ago.

He designed it, not at once but somewhat on the fly.

And he built it – from the first brick he ever married to mortar to about 500,000 or so more – with the help of his three sons.

“I wouldn’t have started it if I knew the time it would take out of my life,” said Brian of his Clearcreek Township creation. “It took 20 years out of my life. But I fell in love with it as I went along.

“The first season was an eye-opener as far as bricklaying went. I got scared when it came to putting up the arches.”

But his confidence grew and he made additions to his plan, such as a second turret, installing electrical lines as he went along for lighting that would come later.

Remodeling of Brian’s 1885 wood-framed farmhouse with no indoor plumbing began after he bought the 1½-acre property in 1981. He went to Rome in 1988 and laid his first courtyard brick in 1995, beginning with a freestanding practice wall.

The detached wall baffled passersby, Brian said.

What’s it doing there? What’s it going to be?

Today, Brian’s neighbors and people from nearby Lebanon know it as “The Castle.”

Named Brian Manor – which is a home, arboretum, art gallery, painting studio, healing center and bed and breakfast all in one – it is shared with his partner, Jan Berg. The couple met in a Mason painting class in 2000.

Berg considers Brian’s courtyard to be the work of a true artist.

“You know, people don’t build like that anymore,” she said. “They tear down buildings instead of building them to keep.”

Brian knew construction, having worked in insulation for 25 years, 20 as owner of Brian Insulation. But he had to teach himself to lay bricks, integrate stone and cement features and lay down pavers in attractive patterns throughout the 170-foot by 120-foot courtyard.

It features three-story turrets that require 48 winding steps to ascend. The main courtyard is eight-sided. A nine-sided interior brick courtyard features a bar, a dining table, wood-burning fireplace and a three-story chimney.

There are Romanesque details in the design, figures embedded in the walls and statuary throughout the space. Garden beds include a circular herb garden tended by Berg.